Geneva, Switzerland, 22 - 23 May 2014

Venue: International Environment House 1 (IEH-1), Châtelaine, Geneva, Switzerland

Highlights: The Bureau of the twelfth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Basel Convention will meet from 22 to 23 May 2014 in Geneva, Switzerland.

Bureau members will, among other things, review progress made in implementation of the decisions adopted by the Conference of the Parties at its eleventh meeting and discuss the preparation of the twelfth meeting of the Conference to be held back to back with the meetings of the conferences of the parties to the Rotterdam and Stockholm conventions in 2015.

Working Language: The working language of the meeting will be English.

Montreux, Switzerland, 2 - 3 June 2014

Venue: Golf Hotel René Capt, Rue Bon Port 33-35, 1820 Montreux. The meeting will open at 10 :00am on 2 June 2014 and is expected to close by 5:00pm on Wednesday 3 June.

Highlight: The Small Intersessional Working Group on legal clarity (SIWG) is meeting with a view to finalizing the glossary of terms; to prepare recommendations as to whether any terms defined in previously adopted technical guidelines and guidance documents as well as the framework for the environmentally sound management of hazardous wastes and other wastes need to be updated as a result; to prepare recommendations as to whether further guidance would be useful; and to prepare recommendations on the options for further steps towards the consistent interpretation of terminology, including possible voluntary and legally binding options. The outcome of the meeting will be considered by the Open-ended Working Group during its ninth meeting (22-24 September 2014, Geneva, Switzerland). Funding for the meeting is provided by Switzerland. 

Working Language: English

Geneva, Switzerland, 16 - 19 September 2014

The ninth meeting of the Open-ended Working Group of the Basel Convention (OEWG-9) will be held from 16 to 19 September 2014 in Geneva, Switzerland. The venue will be Centre International de Conférences Genève (CICG) http://www.cicg.ch/.

Working Language: Please note that pursuant to paragraph 2 of decision BC-11/19, on Tuesday, 16 September, and Friday, 19 September, simultaneous interpretation into Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish will be provided in plenary sessions. On Wednesday, 17 September, and Thursday, 18 September, technical meetings, including contact group meetings, will be held in English only. 

Highlights: The Open-ended Working Group will consider a number of issues related to the implementation of the Convention, as set out in the Work Programme of the Open-ended Working Group for 2014–2015 approved by the eleventh meeting of the Conference of the Parties. Among others, the Open-ended Working Group will review updated technical guidelines on persistent organic pollutants waste, mercury waste and e-waste. The Working Group will also consider the outcome of intersessional work on the national reporting format, the framework for the environmentally sound management of hazardous wastes and other wastes and providing further legal clarity. Furthermore, the Working Group will consult with the Implementation and Compliance Committee and prepare recommendations on options for operations of the Open-ended Working Group.

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